Bob Iger talks about allowing booze at Star Wars Land, even as Disneyland purists say no

Disneyland purists might want to keep alcohol away from the parks, but Bob Iger sees no problem with Star Wars Land offering some booze to guests.

As the CEO of The Walt Disney Company, Bob Iger has a lot on his plate. He is the man behind the House of Mouse, and that means making sure to uphold the legacy of Walt Disney, while also helping to move it forward.

In an all-encompassing interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Iger had a chance to touch on many topics, including the FOX merger that will bring many Marvel characters back into the fold, and even Star Wars. But perhaps the most interesting comments (at least for some of us) had to do with allowing alcohol at the upcoming Star Wars Land.

During the interview, Bob Iger was asked about people being upset over the idea of the new theme park offering alcohol for sale. In response, Iger jokingly said, “We have to be careful we don’t let people drink and then go on Autopia.”

However, the interviewer pointed out that, much like Disneyland purists are against the sale of alcohol at the park, so was Walt Disney. Then his answer shifted a bit. Considering Bob Iger is the man in charge of Disney’s legacy, it makes sense that he would be asked to answer for going against what some consider to be tradition.

According to Iger, though, “I think Walt had a nip or two in his apartment at night.” And in all honesty, he explained that even though he is “a big believer in tradition. This just seemed like one of those traditions that if we changed it, the empire wasn’t going to crumble.”

On the one hand, we all understand where the Disneyland purists are coming from. They want to keep the park’s legacy intact the way Walt Disney designed it. But at the same time, Star Wars was never part of the original Disney empire to begin with. It was something that was added in later, and so breaking free from tradition doesn’t seem nearly as bad as, say, the recent addition of alcohol in all Magic Kingdom sit-down restaurants.

Star Wars Land might be a part of both Disney World’s expansion, but it is still its own unique park in many ways. And considering how “adult” the Star Wars movies can be at times, it makes sense that Bob Iger would want to keep that feeling alive, even if that does mean adding a few alcoholic beverages to the menu.